What other goodies have you got for us I wonder?
D
We're just back from a week in Luxor 12th - 19th December. We stayed at the Hilton Hotel which we found to be excellent. We saw many birds in the hotel grounds, starting with a very confiding hoopoe. Lesser pied kingfishers were the first of many lifers for some of us, and were usually to be found perched on the masts of the feluccas moored at the side of the hotel. The location was on the East Bank almost opposite from the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank. Across towards the far bank was a long sandbank, almost an island with lots of vegetation on it and here we saw each day cormorants, little egrets, grey and purple herons and glossy ibis. In the trees near our balcony were palm doves and house sparrows. A black kite was seen daily above the hotel or the river. On different days on the island/sandbank we saw marsh sandpiper, ruff, black-winged stilt, greenshank and black tern flying past.
For our trips to town or excursions further afield we used the man who owned the shop (and seemed to own a fleet of taxis) in the main street opposite the end of the hotel driveway. His prices were cheaper than the tour company and he arranged some super trips for us. The ones to the Valley of the Kings/Queen Hapshetshut's temple and Habu Temple and another day to the Valley of the Queens/Nobles we were accompanied by a very knowledgeable Egyptologist who was connected to Luxor Museum. Atef brought everything to life for us. (Well, everything except Rameses!)
One morning we had a taxi to the Movenpick Hotel on Crocodile Island and here we were to see many birds for our list, including lesser whitethroat, willow warbler, little green bee eater, blue cheeked bee eater, graceful warbler, clamorous reed warbler in the gardens, with our first sighting of the week of spur winged plover on the lawns.
A little way from the hotel we had one of many lifers for us -
black-shouldered kite. On the banking by the river we had a pair of Senegal thick-knee with three juveniles and in the trees and bushes were red avadavat, chiffchaff, bluethroat (red spot), common bulbul and Nile valley sunbird. We spent two half days in the hotel grounds.
(To be continued...................)
That sounds as if you had a really good trip Sandra - and there's more to follow!!?
What other goodies have you got for us I wonder?
D
You are welcome to read my full report, Delia, but I'd need your e-mail address as it's on a Word document and I don't know how to send that. Doh...
Sandra